


Last Day of the Wizard

by Meaninglessness



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Yu-Gi-Oh! GX
Genre: All Dead Characters are Technically Alive, Alternate Universe, Friendship, Gen, HP: EWE, Implied Relationships, Warning Tag is Misleading af
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-04
Updated: 2017-01-05
Packaged: 2018-09-14 18:15:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9197606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meaninglessness/pseuds/Meaninglessness
Summary: When a freak accident concerning a nuclear bomb and a ley line ritual happens, life on Earth is nearly completely wiped out by the radiation, leaving Harry Potter as the last living magical being on Earth. lucky for him, Death has a proposal involving a card game and moving his friends' souls to the world where card spirits live. For Harry, this means a whole new adventure.





	1. The Cards From Death

**Author's Note:**

> So... I posted this ages ago on FFN and I haven't posted it here yet. It's very friendship-y, like Hound is, but I hope you'll enjoy!
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own the characters or the places or even the cards. I only own the changes made to the canon plot. Also, This was written from what I remember of the Chinese sub at the time, so excuse any inaccuracies.

"There's no point if I'm the only one left."

Frustration boiled in him as he glared at the being in front of him. It wasn't fair, it really wasn't fair. After all that had happened, didn't he deserve rest? Didn't he deserve to be reunited with his friends and family?

But no... Even after what had happened, the final battle that had claimed the lives of everyone he knew... And all life of Earth. Except him.

Because he was the Master of Death and the Master of Death couldn't die. And he was still the Master of Death with the destruction of the Resurrection Stone, Elder Wand and Cloak of Invisibility.

Earth was gone, all known life with it. It only took a Ley Line ritual and a Nuclear bomb to incinerate every living being on the planet and for Death to come to him, summoned by the rip in the barrier between life and death. Too many souls passing through at once caused it to become unstable and Harry, as the Master of Death, had hoped to save a few.

Unfortunately, that went against some rules that not even he could break. Death could only kill, not resurrect. The summoning of souls was a temporary thing and the Resurrection Stone was gone, anyways.

He would never get his rest, never see his friends and family again.

"There never was a point. Life and Death just is," a thousand voices answered him, though Death was the one speaking. And wasn't it creepy to see an exact copy of him talking like that, and looking lifeless like that, bony hands wrapped around a scythe? It was, it really was, and it made his fingers twitch with the urge to curse this being out of existence.

Death was smiling at him almost triumphantly, though the look was ruined by its(his?) sunken cheeks and bloodless skin. It looked like a smiling corpse. Harry had never wanted to kill something so bad as he did now.

"So that's it? I'm just going to wander on this dead planet alone forever?" He asked, and he had to ask, because if he wasn't going to die, what was to become of him? His voice broke in the middle of his question and his breath hitched. Tired green eyes blinked in an attempt to clear away the budding tears. What he wouldn't give to see another person instead of this imposter. Hell, he'd give anything to see snake face again.

"Of course not," Death replied and Harry looked at him, almost hopeful. "There are other worlds out there, other lives to live, other people to be. And in one such world, there is a way for you to be reunited with your friends."

"How? Where?" The questions came out as a whisper.

Death waved his hand and, out of thin air, several cards appeared. Curious, Harry took one of them.

Hermione, she was on that card! Her name was written at the top along with some odd title. The "Hogwarts Spell Master"? That really did suit her.

"Those cards are linked to their spirits. You can call upon them if you so wish, as long as you accept the offer to start a new life in the world I was talking about," Death informed him. "Some of your friends agreed to being linked to these cards... As did your enemies." Harry blinked at him in slight surprise. "They said something about wanting to be called upon in battle."

"Enemies?"

In response, Death floated a card towards him.

 _The Dark Lord Voldemort_ was written in a fancy gold color with a picture of the snake-faced man. Harry kind of wanted to laugh because seriously?

"In the world these cards are from, it's a game." Harry could tell, since he had seen the words on the cards. It sounded like a weird card game of some sort. With spells and traps and, oh Merlin, monsters? "Do you accept?"

"Are you really asking that?"

* * *

 

Maximillion Pegasus had experienced a great deal in life, he had adopted a great many children as well, but none of them were quite like this one. He had found the child on his doorstep one day with nothing but a blanket and a deck of cards he was pretty sure he had never created. He had no name except the _Harry_ sown on the blanket in golden threads.

So, of course, Pegasus took him in. Why wouldn't he? Harry wasn't the first orphan he had adopted.

But there was something different about Harry. He was too quiet and in awe of what Pegasus did when he took care of the child. He knew more than other children, developed faster and occasionally became depressed and unresponsive to all except for his cards. Well, he always talked to them, even when he didn't talk to anyone else.

There was something vulnerable though, about Harry, that made Pegasus protective over him. He kept Harry a secret from the world because of that and Harry didn't seem to mind. He didn't like playing with other children or socializing in general, unless it was with his family.

But then one day Harry said he wanted to go to Duel Academy. And while Harry did quite like dueling despite the concern he held for his monsters at first, the fact that he had suddenly sprung something like that was very surprising. He was usually passive, after all.

Pegasus wouldn't deny him that though. Harry needed to socialize, and Pegasus would be a horrible father if he denied him that.

* * *

 

He really didn't want to do this but Ginny said he had to move on. Ergo, make new friends, actually have a life outside of his adoptive father and siblings. He liked Pegasus, the man was a great father, if a little weird, and his adoptive siblings were all happy to have a baby brother to dote on.

He didn't want to go to a boring school though, no matter how much Hermione urged him to. Luckily, Ron got the idea of duel academy, a school where you learn dueling. So under the stern gaze of Hermione and Ginny, he asked his father to enroll him there.

But was it what he really wanted?

Of course not. What he really wanted was for everyone to be alive and happy, or for him to be dead. Either works.

Harry gazed down at the card in his hand and winced at the memories it brought up. Last Day of the Witch indeed. He wouldn't be using this, never would. Not when he had experienced the 'Last Day of the Witch' up close and personal.

_You'll never move on if you don't get over it._

Now, didn't that voice sound suspiciously like Hermione? He didn't want to move on though. Better to wallow in his own sorrows in his opinion. He didn't want to forget all that had happened.

He looked up. Domino City was bright and sunny today.

... And it was just about time that the entrance duels would be ending. Luckily for him, he had been wandering around the doors to the building they were held in.

Walking up to the check-in counter in front of the building, he was about to speak when a voice interrupted him. He turned to look and blinked in surprise. There was someone climbing over the edge of the railing! A head of fluffy brown hair appeared over the edge, arms hauling their owner up and over the railing.

"Jaden Yuki, number 110!"

The two women and one man stared at the odd sight. Harry smiled at the boy's antics. He had seen weirder, though.

"Hadrian Pegasus, 111." Because 'Harry' apparently didn't go well enough with 'Pegasus'.

"So you were almost late, too, huh?" Jaden asked him with a grin as they walked inside together.

Harry gave him an amused look. "Not really. I spent the past half an hour watching duelist-to-be's walking into the building. I was purposefully late."

Jaden cast him a confused look. "Why would you want to be late? You could've lost the chance to take the exams and then you wouldn't get to go to Duel Academy at all."

 _Thats exactly why,_ Harry thought to himself. It was his friends that wanted him to go. Hermione would've clobbered him over the head with a textbook had he purposefully missed this. Though she had already done that for his purposeful flunking of the written portion. Which was why he was 111.

"Haven't you ever heard of the phrase 'the hero is always fashionably late'?" He asked with a small grin instead.

Jaden laughed at that. "Hero, huh? Do you have a hero deck?"

"No, I don't," Harry replied shaking his head, "My deck is special. Something no one has ever seen before." And wasn't that an understatement. Death didn't care about time, you see, so many of his cards were 'from the future' literally. He had these Synchro cards and Xyz cards. Like Fawkes, who was a Snychro and Hagrid who was an Xyz.

"Really?" The other said excitedly. "You have to duel me sometime, that sounds awesome. Can I see your deck?"

Harry laughed a little at Jaden's enthusiastic response. "Sorry, you'll just have to wait until it's my turn to duel," he replied.

At once, the brunette deflated. "Aw, man." He perked up again quickly though as they entered the stadium. There were still a few duels going on and Jaden quickly rushed over to observe. He perched himself next to a boy with blue hair and Harry tuned their conversation out in favor of focusing on his deck.

Somewhere in the middle of that, another boy joined them and Harry looked up, having decided to use his Hogwarts deck. It was only fair that he'd honor his friends (and enemies/rivals/teachers) like this by using their cards in his first public duel. He smirked a little. Death really made his friends 'overkill' so to speak. He doubted anyone using the decks used to test beginners could beat his.

"Will Jaden Yuki, please come down to duel field four."

"Jaden, was it?" Harry asked the boy next to him. "Good luck."

Jaden grinned back at him. "Thanks, uh, Hadrian, right?"

Harry smiled and shook his head. "Just Harry will do."

"Well, duel ya later Harry, see ya, Syrus, number two."

"Number two?" 'Number two' asked, an expression of confusion on his face.

"Yeah, 'cause I'm number one!" With that, Jaden ran off. Harry chuckled at the bewildered expression on the faces of the two others. Jaden was really amusing.

"How can he be so confident? He's only nine places higher than I am..." The blue-haired boy muttered dejectedly.

"You're 119?" Harry asked curiously, sliding into the seat next to the boy. "I'm triple one, Hadrian James Pegasus."

"Ah, I'm, um, Syrus. Syrus Truesdale," Syrus stuttered.

"Nice to meet you," Harry said politely, reaching out a hand to shake. Syrus reminded him a little of himself. Before he went to Hogwarts, that is.

"Pegasus?" 'Number two' spoke up questioningly. "As in Maximillion Pegasus?"

"Yup, that's my dad," Harry confirmed, unsure about this fame his adoptive father had. He'd never liked fame and wondered if this would be an issue.

"Well, nice to meet you, I'm Bastion Misawa," the now named Bastion said with a smile, reaching out to shake hands. Harry obliged, happy that this person didn't seen to care for fame that much.

"Wow, Pegasus, huh? You must know tons of things about Duel Monsters then!" Syrus exclaimed, "But then why did you only get 111?"

"I didn't want good scores so I flunked the written portion," Harry merely said. The two stared at him as if he was crazy. Before anymore could be said though, the noise from the crowd drew their eyes to Jaden's duel.

There was a giant machine on the field. "Huh, Acient Gear Golem isn't supposed to be part of the testing decks," Harry commented with a frown.

They watched the rest of duel until it ended in stunned silence when Flamewingman destroyed Ancient Gear Golem.

"Whao!" Was Syrus' exclamation. Harry agreed. The E-Hero wasn't overpowered like his Hogwarts one and luck and skill were required to use it so well. It wasn't long before Jaden was running back up towards them and a voice ran through the stadium. "Will Hadrian Pegasus please come down to the duel zone."

"That's me," Harry muttered, bidding goodbye to his new... Friends...? He guessed he could call them that. So making new friends wasn't as hard and tiring as he had made it out to be. He greeted Jaden on the way down, who looked excited that he was going to see Harry's cards.

* * *

 

Harry's first impression of thier teacher, Crowler, was that he made Harry think of Umbridge. Just less pink and less fake. Overall, a better version of the pink toad. At least in mannerism. Crowler said something he didn't particularly care about - something about slackers and a PhD? - and Harry noticed that the other had a very unique duel disk.

"You don't even have a duel disk!" Came the words that brought him back to the present.

"Ah, right," Harry said with a grin. "Nearly forgot." Usually, he didn't like to be flashy, but this teacher was pissing him off, so perhaps he could show this arrogant man some stunning magic. He placed his hand over his arm and ran it down, a ram's skull appearing on his arm. Another of Death's gifts, a duel disk that looked like a ram's skull. It was pretty cool though, so Harry used it. It only had one horn, which was where he was to place his cards. His deck was in its mouth and the graveyard was its eye.

His opponent spluttered at seeing that and Harry took out his deck from his trouser pocket before placing it in his disk.

"Can we start now, sir?" He asked as the other tried to compose himself. His duel disk activated with a glowing of its eyes. Crowler activated his as well, fuming from his embarrassment at losing his cool and his previous defeat.

"Duel! I'll be going first! Draw!" Crowler began. A scowl came over his face when he realized he wasn't as lucky this time as he had been just now. "I summon Ancient Gear Soldier (Lv4 1300/1300) in Attack position and place two cards face down and end my turn." The machine soldier appeared in a burst of light and two cards appeared beneath it.

"My turn, then," Harry declared, drawing a card. He smiled down at the card he drew, Ron smiling back up at him. Let's see what other cards he had. Ron, Double Summon, George, Toad and Chicken Egg, Negate Attack (which was useless, considering Ancient Gear Soldier's effect) and Crabbe. "I summon Ronald, the Hogwarts Tactician (Lv4 Tuner 1500/1400) to the field in Attack position." The cartoonified version of the red-headed wizard appeared on the field, holding an animated chess board and pieces which were playing a game of chess by themselves.

"Not so fast," Harry raised an eyebrow at Crower's interruption. "I activate Trap Hole, which can destroy a summoned monster with 1000 attack or above." The card raised itself up.

"Sorry to burst your bubble, sir, but Ron cannot be destroyed by the effects of trap cards. Which means your trap doesn't work," Harry said with a smirk as Ron easily jumped out of the way of the hole that appeared beneath him. Crowler looked shocked. "Furthermore, Ron's second effect let's me add one trap card from my deck to my hand." Harry posed his hand before his deck and a card flew out. "Then I activate Double Summon, letting me normal summon an additional monster this turn." Activating the card, he then took Crabbe and summoned him.

"Then, I summon Vincent, the Hogwarts Guard Dog (Lv4 1900/1900)." The bulky Slytherin appeared on the field cracking his knuckles despite the fact that he couldn't attack unless Draco or Astoria was on the field. "I activate Vincent's special ability and special summon his counterpart, Gregory, the Hogwarts Guard Dog (Lv4 1400/1000 -1900/1500) from my deck to the field." The other equally bulky Slytherin appeared next to his friend and Harry saw Ron shoot them a dirty look before glaring at Hary as if he knew what Harry was about to do. He probably did. "His effect gives him 500 Attack and defense points while his counterpart is on the field, but that's not the important part. Prepare to see something special...

"I overlay Ron, Vincent and Gregory to Xyz summon Hagrid, the Hogwarts Keeper of Keys (Lv4 1600/1200)." Harry took the three cards and laid them on top of one another before bringing Hagrid out from his extra deck. The gentle giant appeared and gave him a grin.

_A'ight there, 'arry?_

"Hey, Hagrid," Harry whispered with a wide grin. "And do you know what Hagrid can do as an Xyz Monster?" He then asked out loud to his teacher-to-be who was spluttering and stuttering about 'overlay', 'Xyz' and 'what is this'? "For every Overlay Unit Hagrid has, that is to say Ron, Vincent and Gregory, he gains 400 attack and defense. (1600/1200 - 2800/2400). But that's not all," the words made Crowler pale, "If I remove one of its overlay units from play, I can remove from play one monster on the field. So I remove Vinent from play and do the same to your Ancient Gear Soldier!" The metal soldier disappeared in a flash of light and Hagrid's attack and defense went down to 2400/2000.

"Now, Hagrid can attack you directly!" The gentle giant charged Crowler with an unusually fierce expression, tackling him. The older man cried out and fell to his knees. (LP - 4000/1600)

Did everyone have to be so dramatic? Sure, the holograms were scary, but the pain was purely psychological (with some convincing illusions of touch played on them by the duel disks/arenas) and had absolutely nothing on the Cruciatus.

"I set one card face down and end my turn," Harry intoned, setting Magic Jammer on the field. This was the card he had gotten with Ron's help. He would win, because Crowler wasn't going to get a chance to summon Ancient Gear Golem.

His opponent staggered upwards, gritting his teeth in anger. "My turn! Draw!" Suddenly, the man grinned and Harry knew Crowler had gotten what he wanted. "I set one card face down and activate Heavy Storm!"

"And I activate Magic Jammer!"

"What!?"

"By discarding one card, I can negate your spell card."

Crowler went pale and then red. Quite fascinating. Harry had never seen anyone change colors so fast without magic. Well, except for Vernon Dursley that is, but this man was nothing like his past uncle. In fact, he'd probably count as 'a freak'. "I activate Ancient Gear Castle and summon Ancient Gear Soldier in defense mode. Then I lay one card face down and end my turn." The machine soldier appeared, hunkering down protectively, a giant castle rising with a rumble in the background.

"Then it's my turn again, draw." Harry smiled as he drew his card. Hermione grinned up at him and Harry looked over his cards. Apart from Hermione, he had Toad and Chicken Egg and George. Perfect. "I summon Hermione, the Hogwarts Spell Master (Lv4 Tuner 1400/1500) in Attack position!" The bushy haired witch appeared, holding up her wand and a spell book. "Then her special effect activates, letting me add one spell card from the deck to my hand!" Getting Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry into his hand, he played it. "Then I activate the field spell, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!" The giant castle from the continuous spell card was easily swallowed by the walls of a much larger castle. Moving staircases and disappearing doors rose up around them, as the field changed.

Harry couldn't help the happy grin that appeared on his face at the sight of his school. "Now, because this school is so magical, you might just find your machines malfunctioning," Harry informed the other, gesturing to where Ancient Gear Soldier was sparking and creaking. "So the attack and defense of all machine type monsters go down by 400 making your Acient Gear Soldier's attack and defense 900."

"What!?" Crowler bit at the ruff of his coat as he fumed and Harry heard a muffled scream of rage.

"But that's not important, because with Hagrid's effect, he can remove your monster from play by removing one of his overlay units from play." Ancient Gear Soldier disappeared and Hagrid's attack went down. (2400/2000 - 2000/1600) "Now Hermione can attack you directly!"

A smirk appeared on Crowler's face. "I activate this trap card, Mirror Force!" He declared, but nothing happened. "Wh-what? Why isn't it activating?"

"The Magical School that is Hogwats always protects its inhabitants, sir," Harry answered, "So no traps or spells can be activated when any Hogwarts monsters attack! That's not it though, Hogwarts also gives Hogwarts monsters a 400 point bonus when attacking the opponent directly!" (1400 - 1800) Hermione waved her wand with a smirk and shot a bright orange spell at Crowler which exploded, taking the rest of his life points.

The teacher screamed something incomprehensible and Harry sighed. "I'm sure his lost wasn't _that_ painful...?" He shrugged. "Well, I passed, so who cares."

That was when he realized everyone was silent, though it didn't last long since a tremulous cheer went up from the crowd. It was even louder than when they cheered for Jaden and he could hear mutterings about his Xyz cards. Cringing at the noise, he quickly left the field.

Now, for Duel Academy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Used Harry Potter Universe Cards:
> 
> Hermione, the Hogwarts Spell Master – Lv 4, Fire, Spellcaster/Tuner, 1500/1400
> 
> When this card is successfully Normal or Flip summoned, select a spell card in your deck and add it to your hand and then shuffle your deck. This card cannot be destroyed by effects of Spell cards.
> 
> Ronald, the Hogwarts Tactician – Lv 4, Fire, Spellcaster/Tuner, 1400/1500
> 
> When this card is successfully Normal or Flip summoned, select a trap card in your deck and add it to your hand and then shuffle your deck. This card cannot be destroyed by effects of Trap cards.
> 
> Vincent, the Hogwarts Guard Dog – Lv 4, Water, Spellcaster/Effect, 1900/1900
> 
> When this card is successfully Normal or Flip Summoned, you can special summon one "Gregory, the Hogwarts Guard Dog" from your hand or deck. Once per your opponent's turn, you can redirect an attack towards this card. This card cannot attack unless "Draco, the Hogwarts Prince" or "Astoria, the Hogwarts Princess" is on the field.
> 
> Gregory, the Hogwarts Guard Dog – Lv 4, Water, Spellcaster/Effect, 1400/1000
> 
> When this card is successfully Normal or Flip summoned, you can special summon one "Vincent, the Hogwarts Guard Dog" from your hand or deck. WHile "Vincent, the Hogwarts Guard Dog" is on the field, this card gains 500 attack points and defense points. When "Vincent, the Hogwarts Guard Dog" is destroyed by Spell, Trap, or Monster effects, minus 500 attack and defense points from this card.
> 
> Hagrid, Hogwarts Keeper of Keys – Lv 4, Earth, Warrior/Xyz, 1600/1200
> 
> 3 Level 4 Monsters
> 
> Once per turn, you can remove one overlay unit on this card from play to remove from play one of the monsters on your opponent's field. For each overlay units this monster has, it gains 400 attack and defense. If this card has no overlay units, it cannot attack.
> 
> Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry – Field Spell
> 
> All Hogwarts monsters gain 400 attack when attacking the opponent directly. When a Hogwarts monster declares an attack, spell/trap cards cannot be activated until the end of the damage step. All machine type monsters on the field lose 400 attack and defense. If this card is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, all Hogwarts monsters currently on the field lose 500 attack and defense.
> 
> Mentioned Harry Potter Universe Cards
> 
> Fawkes, Phoenix of Hogwarts
> 
> Toad and Chicken Egg
> 
> George, the Hogwarts Prankster
> 
> Draco, the Hogwarts Prince
> 
> Astoria, the Hogwats Princess
> 
> The Dark Lord Voldemort
> 
> The rest of the cards are either real or appear in the anime.


	2. The Hogwarts Cards - Gryffindor Pt. 1

_Harry, how could you! You only got 64% on the written portion!_

"I know, Hermione, you've scolded me for that several times already," Harry muttered to himself, ignoring the way the person sitting next to him on the helicopter looked at him.

_But you knew those answers, Harry!_

Harry smiled weakly up at the floating spirit of his friend who had her arms crossed with a scowl. "Yes, I did, Hermione, but I had a good reason."

 _I know you did it to avoid Obelisk and Ra, but, still._ The bushy haired young woman gave a sigh. _You got a, excuse my cursing, crappy score, but they still put you in Obelisk, no?_

"Yeah, and I'm complaining as soon as I get on the island," The dark haired boy interrupted, earning a glare from Hermione.

 _You could've gotten a good score and then_ requested _to be put in Slifer Red_ , Hermione huffed.

"But," Harry countered, "Then I wouldn't be able to accuse them of favoritism towards the rich and powerful."

 _Fine then. Be that way_ , Hermione pouted and disappeared.

Harry chuckled at his friend's antics and shook his head fondly. Hermione would probably pout for quite a bit before getting over it. She was crazy when it came to studying. Meanwhile, the person next to him was looking at him as if he were crazy. That was kind of understandable though, since he wasn't wearing the colored jackets everyone else was and he was talking to himself.

Having seen that the color of the uniform he had received was the very color he was trying avoid, Harry had forgone it in favor of silk emerald green shirt (that Ginny had forced on him with the comment that it matched his eyes) and a pair of white baggy trousers.

Anyways, he should probably get some sleep. There was still an hour or two until they arrived, after all.

"Harry! Oi, Harry!" Aaaannnd, there goes his nap. He lifted his head from where he had rested it against the palm of his hand to see none other than Jaden Yuki coming down the isle to where he was sitting.

Harry blinked as the teen with bi-colored hair came to a stop next to him, Syrus following him. "'Lo, Jaden, Syrus," he greeted. "What's the rush?"

"Let's duel," the excitable teen immediately replied as Syrus panted to catch his breath. It seemed that the blue haired teen had decided to follow Jaden.

He blinked again, a little caught off guard by the suggestion. Then he shrugged. "Sure, I guess."

"Awesome!" Jaden exclaimed, giving a fist pump. He then looked to the person in the seat next to Harry and the person who had the window seat. "Hey, can we switch seats?"

"Gladly," the guy muttered, jumping off and walking away without even asking Jaden where his seat was. The guy in the window seat followed, making Jaden blink after them in confusion.

"What's with them?" Jaden inquired, scratching his head.

"No clue."

"Let's duel!" Jaden declared, having settled in the seat next to Harry's. They had the tables down and their cards on them with Syrus watching in the window seat.

* * *

"I tune Ron with Vincent and Toad and Chicken Egg to synchro summon Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts!" Harry smirked as he sent his three cards to his graveyard, taking Dumbledore's white card from his extra deck and summoning him in Attack mode.

"Eh?" Jaden blinked down at his field. "You can do that?"

"That's a synchro summon for you," Harry said smugly. "It requires a tuner monster, sometimes a specific one depending on the card, and other monsters. Their total level should equal the level of the monster summoned."

"Uh, you two?" Harry and Jaden looked over at Syrus, who had timidly spoke, finally tearing their eyes away from their game. "We're almost there." He jabbed his thumb towards the window, the island just under them.

"We are?" The two chorused, blinking. Their game had lasted over an hour, mainly because Jaden was overexcited about all of Harry's cards and Harry had stories to tell of each and every card.

* * *

Like Jaden, Harry wasn't really awake through the Chancellor's speech. He blamed Jaden for it though, since he had been prevented from taking a nap on the helicopter by the other boy. While fun to be with, Jaden was tiring to hang out with as well. His woke at the end of it, when they were dismissed.

"Hey, Harry! You coming with us to find our dorms?" Jaden called cheerfully as he came over with Syrus on his heels.

While Harry would've loved to go with them, he had something else to do. Talk to the principal about switching dorms. "Sorry," he said with a shake of his head, "I have something to do. I'll see you later at the dorms."

"Well, okay then, see you," Jaden said cheerfully, "Come on, Syrus, I can't wait to to go and explore!" Then he made his way towards the door.

"See you around, Harry!" Syrus then quickly turned to chase Jaden, leaving Harry to call a goodbye at him.

Jaden would fit right in with the Gryffindors from what Hary had seen. Carefree, excitable and emotional. Stifling a yawn, he made his way to the principal's office.

* * *

One and a half hours of pointless arguing, thanks to a certain Vellian Crowler, later, Harry was walking to his new dorm in his new red coat. Red for Gryffindor! If only it had gold instead of white on it.

It had started out okay, the chancellor confused, but willing let him transfer to red. However, the mascot-like professor had found out and made a big fuss, eventually even calling Pegasus, who had told them to let Harry do as he wishes. The argument/ranting/mourning (about him leaving blue) had eventually died down when Harry said that since he was in blue Jaden should be, too.

He sighed a little. Crowler wasn't as bad as Umbridge, sure, but he was still annoying as hell. It was already quite late and the welcoming feast was probably starting. He looked around and then down at his PDA, which had a map of the main building on it. It was rather helpful, but Harry didn't think he would need it all that much. He had experienced Hogwarts, after all, and the castle was quite a bit bigger than this school.

Just then, someone charged around the corner and crashed into him, sending him sprawling with an 'oomph'.

"Ow..."

"Aniki! And... Harry!"

Oh, hey! He recognized that voice. Sitting up from his sprawled position while rubbing his head, he blinked at the similarly positioned Jaden. He was so glad that he no longer needed glasses. Now if only Death would have fixed his hair's untamable mess, it'd be perfect. "Ouch," he murmured with a wince. "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's not safe to run in the corridors, Jaden?"

"Ah..." Jaden grinned sheepishly, getting up and offering Harry a hand. "Sorry, sorry."

Harry accepted the hand and was pulled up.

"Are you two okay?" Syrus asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure it won't kill us, Syrus," Harry said with a small smile. "Anyways, why were you running in the first place?"

"Oh yeah! We're gonna be late for the welcoming feast!" Jaden exclaimed in a panicked tone before taking off.

"H-hey, wait up, Aniki!"

"Didn't I just say that you shouldn't run in the corridors?!" Harry sighed as his advice was ignored and followed after Syrus, who was running to catch up with his... Big brother? Okay... "Hey, Syrus, why are you calling Jaden aniki?"

"Oh, well," Syrus rubbed his head a little as they jogged after Jaden, "That's a long story."

"We've a long way to go until we get to our dorms."

* * *

After an interesting welcoming feast (in which Jaden managed to become the center of attention again), Harry, Jaden and Syrus went back to their room. Harry had been placed with Jaden and Syrus for the moment since there weren't any spare rooms. He was going to get a new room soon, but he had to stay with them for now.

The large bed smack-dab in the middle of the room made it a bit of a squeeze, but Jaden didn't seem to mind, happily rolling from Harry's bed to 'his'. "I call bottom bunk!"

Syrus made tea for them, though Harry and Chumley, their other roommate, declined, one mor politely than the other. Harry didn't really understand why they'd be drinking tea now. Wouldn't be hard to sleep if they did?

That was when Jaden got a message. Some guy called Chazz Princeton had sent it, challenging Jaden to a duel with their best cards at stake. Jaden was all but ready to agree, completely enthusiastic until...

"... Hey, Jaden. How the hell did he get your number? Are you sure he isn't some creep?"

Jaden, Syrus and Chumley, blinked wide eyes at Harry.

"Huh... I never thought about that," Jaden said thoughtfully before grinning widely. "But a duel's a duel! I'm going anyways. And ask Chazz about that while I'm at it."

"Well, I'm going with you just in case," Harry decided. It wasn't like he was a stranger to sneaking out and about at night.

"M-me, too!" Syrus added, though hesitantly.

And so they ended up sneaking out. Chumley stayed behind though. He didn't seem all that enthusiastic about anything.

It was rather easy to sneak into the building and avoid the security. Especially for one of Harry's caliber. Once they were safely inside and away from security, Jaden took the lead with Syrus right beside him, worried, while Harry brought up the rear, keeping an eye out.

"Heh, so you came, number 110."

Arrogant smirk, haughty posture, obviously a rich kid, if only he had slicked back hair then he could pass for a Malfoy. Hell, he even had two cronies, though they were not nearly as burly as Crabbe and Goyle. And they seemed much more independent, too.

Once upon a time, Harry would've hated him on principle. For now though, he'd reserve judgement until he knew more. Being with Malfoy, or at least his spirit, had taught him look beyond the surface. They weren't lose, by any means, but when someone's spirit used your soul to traverse realms, it was kind of hard to not understand them.

 _I should take care of this._ Malfoy's voice rang in his head.

Harry raised an eyebrow. _Since when do you voluntarily help me?_

_Since we're stuck together for the rest of our not-lives. We might as well try to get along and if you can actually get along with the fucking Dark Lord, of all people, I see no reason why we can't._

_Fine then._

"Oh? And you brought that other kid who defeated Crowler as well," Chazz spoke again and Harry gave him a smile and wave. "The son of the creator of Duel Monsters. Allegedly, anyways." The Obelisk narrowed his eyes at Harry's attire. "But still nothing but a Slifer Slacker!"

"Who asked to be transferred to Red from Blue since Blue is full of rich kids who don't know that skill is different from money," Harry drawled. Or, well, Malfoy did. Harry had given up a portion of the control he had over his own body to Mal-Draco - he should probably be calling him Draco, like he did his card.

 _Wow, Draco, I didn't know you knew the difference_ , Harry teased.

_Shut it, or I'll leave you to fend for yourself._

Chazz turned slightly red and glared.

"I'll have you know that Chazz was the best in Duel Prep school!" Crony one said, eyes narrowed behind his glasses.

"Wow, you actually needed to go to prep school to learn dueling?" Harry feat himself ask in mock surprise. "I always thought dueling was something that was easy to learn. Easy enough that a child could learn by themselves. I guess not everyone's that good then. Though it appears that Silfer has the most intelligence since most of them didn't have to have someone help teach them to duel, but could still get in. Maybe you're just slow?"

Jaden and Syrus were looking at him in open-mouthed awe.

 _This is really fun. Hey, Draco, I want to try, too._ Harry took control of his body once more as Draco grumbled.

Crony two, the one without glasses, spoke up then, fuming. "How dare you insult Chazz!"

"That's the best comeback you could some up with?" Harry raised an eyebrow. "No wonder you needed prep school."

"Thats enough," Chazz cut across the comment Crony one was about to make, teeth grit and eyes spitting fire . "Let's duel, now, and then we'll see who's slow." A finger was pointed in Harry's direction.

"Hey!" Jaden protested, "But I-"

"Sure," Harry agreed.

"But I want to duel-!"

"I'm sure you'll get a chance to, Jaden," Harry told him with a smile before getting into position and activating his academy issue duel disk. Jaden sulked.

"Winner takes the loser's best card," Chazz challenged, shuffling his deck.

Harry grinned, shuffling his own. "You're on."

"Duel!"

"I'll go first," Chazz intoned. " I draw!" He looked at his cards and gave a grimace. Probably because he made the deck expecting to face Jaden's fusion monsters. "I summon Reborn Zombie (Lv4 1000/1600) in defense mode!" The creepy zombie appeared without much fanfare, kneeling down protectively with his card under him. "I'll place one card face down and end my turn."

"I guess it's me now," Harry drew a card and grinned down at his hand. Looks like he was going Gryffindor today. "First things first, say hello to this continuous spell card, Hogwarts' Ruby-Filled Hourglass!" A very much empty hourglass appeared, a small golden lion symbol engraved on it. "Every time a fire attribute Hogwarts Spellcaster is summoned using any method, one House Point Counter is added to it. Then I summon Hermione, the Hogwarts Spell Master (Lv4 Tuner 1500/1400) in Attack mode!" Hermione was apparently still angry at him since she huffed and folded her arms when she appeared in the typical flash of light. A ruby clacked against glass as it appeared inside his hourglass. "Her effect lets me add a spell card from my deck to my hand and I choose double summon!" Harry quickly took the card from his deck. "Then I activate it, allowing me to summon an extra monster this turn. I sacrifice Hermione to summon... Professor McGonagal, the Hogwarts Transfiguration Master (Lv6 1800/2200) in Attack position." Another ruby appeared in the hourglass.

He could see Chazz's eyes narrow at the new Spellcaster on Harry's field. Harry grinned at his professor, her stern gaze fixed on Chazz and her greying hair in its typical bun. "Now I activate Professor McGonagal's effect by discarding one spell card and one monster card! Once per turn, during my main phase, she can transfigure one monster into a random item! Or, rather, a Miscellaneous Token!" Bye bye, Expelliarmus and Snape.

"What?" Chazz exclaimed in surprise, eyes widening.

"A Miscellaneous Token cannot be destroyed by battle. Your monster is temporarily removed from play and, at the end of my turn, it'll come back and the token will be destroyed," Harry explained. "Now, transfigure that monster, Professor!" With an easy wave of Professor McGonagal's wand, Reborn Zombie burst into smoke, only to be replaced with... A table (Lv1 0/0). Harry resisted the urge to burst into laughter, but Jaden had no such restraint. He laughed openly at the monster-turned-furniture while Syrus, Chazz and a girl, of whom Harry had no idea when she got there, eyed it with wide eyes.

"Then, I activate Banner of Courage, which gives my monsters a 200 Attack point boost during the battle phase. (McGonagal: 1800/2200 - 2000/2200) Now, Attack!"

Harry's stern professor looked at the table before completely ignoring it and sending conjured knives at Chazz. He cried out as they went through him (LP - 4000/2000). Harry's professor was so overpowered. But, who cares, right? The majority of his deck were, as categorized by Pegasus, limited or semi-limited anyways.

"I end my turn." (McGonagal: 2000/2200 - 1800/2200)

There was another puff of smoke and the token was replaced with Reborn Zombie once more.

Chazz gritted his teeth and drew, smirking shortly afterwards. "Draw! I sacrifice Reborn Zombie to summon Helpoemer (Lv5 2000/1400) in attack position!" Disappearing in a beam of light, Reborn Zombie vanished only for Helpoemer to make an appearance. "Now, Helpoemer, attack that professor!"

Harry narrowed his eyes as Professor McGonagal was engulfed in darkness and exploded into smoke. (LP - 3800/2000) "Professor McGonagal's effect can now activate!" He declared. "When she's removed from the field, I get to Special summon this card from my deck or hand! Come on out, Minerva, the Cat Animagus (Lv8 ?/?)!" When the smoke cleared, it revealed a tabby cat with markings that resembled spectacles. The cat's tail flicked as sat sat primly. "Minerva's original attack and defense are equal to the number of Spell and Trap cards on the field times 300." Minerva closed her eyes as a fiery aura enveloped her. (?/? - 900/900)

"Ha, that's still not enough to defeat Helpoemer!" Chazz exclaimed with a smirk.

"I'm not finished," Harry informed the other with a frown. "Bloody hell, you're impatient. Minerva gains an additional 500 attack for every level four or lower fire attribute Spellcaster in my graveyard! Also, when this card is successfully special summoned, I can add a House Point Counter to any card that needs it!" This time, Minerva stood and hissed threateningly as her attack increased and another ruby fell into the hourglass. (900/900 - 1400/1400) Harry cut Chazz off as he made to speak again. "Just finish your goddamn turn!"

"Fine." The Obelisk blue spat. "Turn end."

"Good, I draw!" Harry drew and grinned when he saw the card he had. "I summon Fred, the Hogwarts Prankster (Lv4 1500/1000)!" The mischievous redhead appeared, holding a beater's bat and some colorfully wrapped sweets. "Due to his effect, I can summon his twin brother George (Lv4 1500/1000) from my deck!" The other twin appeared next to his brother, holding onto some nasty looking prank products. Harry resisted the urge to gag when he saw a dung bomb among them. "Now, George's effect gives him 500 attack and defense when his twin is on the field." George grinned and slung an arm around Fred's shoulders. (1500/1000 - 2000/1500) "And then they all gain 200 attack due to the effects of Banner of Courage! (Minerva: 1400/1400 - 1600/1400, Fred: 1500/1000 - 1700/1000, George: 2000/1500 - 2200/1500) George, attack Helpoemer!"

Geoge jumped up and threw his dung bombs. Harry felt sympathy as they exploded around Helpoemer and the poet from hell shattered. (LP - 3800/1800)

"I activate Call of the Haunted!" Chazz exclaimed, gesturing with a hand, "and bring back Reborn Zombie (1000/1600)!"

Harry frowned. If only Fred could attack the turn he was summoned. If he could, then Hary would win, but he couldn't. He didnt have any cards in his hand either, so he couldn't activate Fred's effect. "Minerva, destroy that zombie!" Minerva leaped up and scratched Reborn Zombie across the face, shattering the monster into tiny pieces. (LP - 3800/1200) "Turn end."

Chazz gritted his teeth. Harry could tell that he had backed the other into a corner. Before Chazz could draw though, the girl, Alexis, spoke up about how there were people coming andthey had to go, now. Jaden kicked up a fuss about not seeing the end of the duel, but Alexis and Syrus were able to drag him away. Chazz didn't say a word when he left, just glaring at Harry one last time before leaving. But it wasn't like it was Harry's fault he got hasty and challenged Harry when he had made his deck to go against Jaden.

"That was awesome!" Jaden exclaimed on their way back. "Come on, Harry, you've got to duel me!"

"Sorry, Jaden, not today," Harry shook his head. "We have classes tomorrow so we should get up early as to not be late on the first day."

"But Harry, you're really good. You had him cornered from the very beginning," Syrus commented excitedly while Jaden pouted again.

"I didn't get to duel anyone..."

"It's not all my effort. I only did so well because of my cards," Harry replied honestly. It wasn't him being humble, it was true. While he was pretty good at dueling, he was no where near Ron or Hermione's level when it came to strategizing or formulating combinations. he als had a good amount of luck, too. However, he _was_ better at keeping an eye out on numbers than Ron (chess and war has little to no math involved), and didn't tend to overthink things like Hermione.

"Whyyyyyy...?"

"That's very humble of you," Syrus decided with a nod.

"I want to duel, too!"

"It's not me being humble, it's true," Harry affirmed.

"When can I duel?"

"I'll duel with you tomorrow, Jaden, after school, if that's what you want."

Jaden immediately perked up, sparkly-eyed and eager. "Really?"

Harry backed away slightly at his over-enthusiasm. "Uh, y-yeah..."

"Great!" Jaden punched the air and then began running. "Last one to the dorm is a rotten egg!"

"W-wait, Aniki!"

Harry grinned and ran after Jaden. "Come on, Syrus, or you'll be the rotten egg," he called over his shoulder.

"Ah! Not you, too! H-Harry! Wait for me!"

A sense of contentment that hadn't been here since he died filled him. Yet there was a tingling feeling on his back which dampened it, reminding him of who he was. As he ran, he slowly lost his grin to a sad smile.

New friends just meant getting hurt again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Used Harry Potter Universe Cards:
> 
> Fred, the Hogwarts Prankster – Lv 4, Fire, Spellcaster/Effect, 1500/1000
> 
> When you successfully Normal or Flip summon this monster, you can special summon one "George, the Hogwarts Prankster" from your hand or deck. If "George, the Hogwarts Prankster" is on the field, you can discard one card to negate the activation of a Spell, Trap, or Monster effect. This card cannot attack during the turn it is summoned.
> 
> George, the Hogwarts Prankster – Lv 4, Fire, Spellcaster/Effect, 1500/1000
> 
> When you successfully Normal or Flip summon this monster, you can special summon one "Fred, the Hogwarts Prankster" from your hand or deck. If "Fred, the Hogwarts Prankster" is on the field, add five hundred attack and defense points to this card. If "Fred, the Hogwarts Prankster" is destroyed by battle and sent to the graveyard, minus five hundred attack and defense points from this card.
> 
> Professor McGonagal, the Hogwarts Transfiguration Master – Lv 6, Fire, Spellcaster/Effect, 1800/2200
> 
> This card is an "Order of the Phoenix" card. When this card is destroyed, you can special summon one "Minerva, the Cat Animagus" to the field from your deck or hand. Once per turn, by discarding one monster card and one spell card, you can remove one monster on your opponent's field from play until the end phase and summon one Miscellaneous Token (Lv1 0/0) in attack position to your opponent's field. Miscellaneous Tokens cannot be destroyed by battle and can only be attacked once per turn.
> 
> Minerva, the Cat Animagus – Lv 8, Light, Beast/Effect, ?/?
> 
> This card counts as a "Hogwarts" monster and cannot be normal summoned or set. When this card is successfully summoned, add one House Point Counter to every card on the field that it can be added to. The original attack and defense of this card equals the number of trap and spell x 300 plus the number of level four and below Fire attribute Spellcasters in the graveyard x 500.
> 
> Hogwarts' Ruby-Filled Hourglass - Continuous Spell Card
> 
> Every time a fire attribute Hogwarts Spellcaster is summoned, add one House Point Counter to this card. You can remove two House Point Counters to prevent the destruction of this card. By tributing this card, you can special summon one monster from the graveyard who's level is equal to or less than the number of House Point Counters on this card.
> 
> Mentioned Harry Potter Universe Cards:
> 
> Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts
> 
> Expelliarmus
> 
> Professor Snape, the Hogwarts Potioneer
> 
> All other cards have been previously mentioned, used or actually exist.


	3. The Hogwarts Cards - Gryffindor Pt. 2

Though this wasn't the original Hogwarts, the one in the world of duel spirits, it was still his Hogwarts and Harry loved being here. He came here almost every night in his dreams and sometimes it would become the center of his existence.

Except that he kinda wished he had never gone over there for tonight.

Why?

Well, that was because Fred and George had been messing with one of Snape's potions, again, and we're looking for someone to test it on, again, so everyone had hidden away and forgotten to tell Harry. Harry, who's physical body was affected by whatever happens to him here. Harry, who had to use the at times useful, at times not creations that the twins (and Snape) came up with. Harry, who really didn't want to have to wake up a girl and explain that to his roommates.

Yes, the twins threw an unfinished genderbending potion at him, which was _absolutely fabulous_ , since Harry was currently rooming with three guys in a boarding school and not in the privacy of his own home. His adoptive siblings and father didn't care too much about the weird things that sometimes happened around him, as long as it wasn't dangerous, saying that they had seen weirder. They were aquatinted with magic.

Now though, he had to either somehow explain why he had spontaneously become a woman to his three male, and very much muggle roommates or avoid them.

...

The latter was probably better, Harry thought to himself as he snuggled deeper into the covers, making sure his body was completely covered.

"Er... Harry?" That was Jaden. "It's time to go to class, you know?"

"I don't feel very good," Harry's voice came out muffled as he shifted so that one eye was visible. "Tell the teacher I'm sick, yeah?"

"Should I get you the nurse?" Syrus' voice drifted over, sounding concerned.

"Nah, I think it's just a cold," Harry lied, sniffling for effect. "I'm sure I'll be as right as rain soon enough."

"Well, if you're sure. Come on, Syrus! We'll be late if we don't hurry!"

"Ah, Aniki!"

Then the door shut.

Harry waited for a moment and deduced that Chumley had already left from the lack of sounds. He relaxed with a sigh. Good, so far everything's gone fine. But, now what was he supposed to do?

His stomach rumbled and he groaned softly. Damnit, he was hungry. But he couldn't go out like this. He sat up, letting the covers fall off his body, and looked around. As he did, something fluttered down onto his pillow. Frowning, he picked it up. It was a card depicting a half-full vial of some blue potion.

_Genderbending Potion_

His hand tightened and the card was scrunched up.

Goddamn those twins...

* * *

Luckily, despite that disaster, the week he was trapped as a girl went quite smoothly. Jaden and Syrus were eager to help and bring his meals to his rooms and all and Jaden, who hated to be trapped in hospital-like places, managed to convince Syrus to not call the nurse.

The potion wore off just in time for the exams, though he did miss going to see Jaden duel Alexis Rhodes for Syrus' freedom. The incident had him wondering, yet again, how people kept on getting Jaden's number without him giving it to them.

He couldn't wait to duel again - and get Fred and George to come over so he could scream at them, since they had been avoiding him ever since.

He got another surprise in the early morning of his exams though. There was a note under his pillow with what looked like instructions on it.

_Try Pendulum Summoning._

Harry blinked, squinting at the instructions. He gave up quickly after the second sentence. Then he turned the note around and quickly scribbled on it.

_Fat chance. Go disturb the timeline elsewhere._

It wasn't long before a reply formed.

_But it's pissing off Fate._

Harry rolled his eyes, ripped up the note and fell back asleep. Death was a jerk.

* * *

The next time he woke, it was because of the alarm clock and Syrus' shrieking. Apparently, the shorter (and didn't Harry enjoy that?) boy was praying to Slifer for good results on his tests.

"Praying isn't going to work unless you give a sacrifice, you know?" Harry commented absently as he got ready for the day.

"S-sacrifice?" Syrus squeaked, turning away from where he was trying to wake Jaden despite Chumley's suggestion.

"Yeah. Gods like that. You know, the soul of a loved one, the heart of a true friend. If you offer something like that, they might answer your pleas," Harry added, still groggy with sleep. He was being truthful. Many gods did like that and usually wouldn't pay attention unless there was something really weird going on. Although perhaps it wasn't the best time to bring it up...

"Ah! Don't die Jaden, I'm so sorry!" Syrus practically screamed, "And I'm going to be late if I don't go soon, so please don't die!" With that, he sprinted from the room, leaving Harry blinking after him.

"Okay..." Harry muttered.

"What the hell was that about?" Chumley questioned.

"Beats me. I'm leaving. I hope Jaden manages to get up soon."

* * *

Jaden didn't manage to get up soon, but he did, at least, manage to make it before the test ended. Although it was all for nought since he and Syrus ended up sleeping the test away. Harry did about three quarters of the paper test, with Hermione's anxious hovering in the back of his mind (she'd never help him cheat, but he never told her that her presence gave away the answers to all his questions), before joining the other two and taking a nap.

A commotion woke him up just in time to see everyone storm straight out of there for some reason or another. He frowned, confused, but luckily Bastion was there to explain.

"The rare cards are coming today, so everyone wants to stock up on them for the practical exams," the Ra student had informed him before going to help him wake up Jaden and Syrus. Jaden was more easy to wake this time, it only took shaking his shoulders to wake him and Syrus and they immediately flew into a panic at the reason the class was empty.

Since Bastion had no interest in the cards, Harry decided to accompany Jaden and Syrus to the shop, despite his own disinterest. His deck held a sentimental value. Well, his decks, all three of them (because Voldemort refused to be in the same deck as the 'light idiots' and Severus didn't want to 'room with a werewolf'. In the end, Hermione and Ron had helped him build decks to everyone's satisfaction. Or, well, mostly. Severus still had to stay in the same deck as a werewolf sometimes).

Unfortunately, for Jaden and Syrus, the shop was empty and all out of cards by the time they got there. Except for one pack, which Jaden decided to let Syrus take. Luckily for Jaden though, his big heart got him a reward in the form of a pack of rare cards that the owner gave him.

It wasn't long before the exams started. And that was when Harry got his first taste of this school's idiocy. Or, well, Crowler's.

They had set Chazz up against Jaden, though Jaden didn't seem to mind. But the irritating thing was that Harry himself was against another Slifer when there were an even number of Slifers. Why didn't they just put Harry against Jaden?

"Oi!" Harry called out right after Jaden expressed his delight. "Why am I not against a blue? I beat you, too! And, anyways, there's an even number of Slifers, why didn't you just pit Jaden against me? You people don't make sense!"

"Ah, that's true!" Jaden decided with a firm nod.

"I want to battle a yellow. After all, there's an odd number of blues and yellows, but an even number of reds, isn't there?" Harry decided.

"What? But it's already-" Crowler's protest was cut off by a light-hearted chuckle from Sheppard, the principal.

"Very well. Bastion Misawa, Harry J. Pegasus, you two shall become opponents. And the two Slifer's who are opposing you can duel against each other for this exam." Said Slifer students let out simultaneous sighs of relief. "Please change duel fields!"

Harry waved goodbye to his opponent and went to join Bastion.

The other smiled at his approach and held out a hand for him to shake, which Harry took with a grin. "I'm very excited to be dueling you. With you and Jaden around, I have no idea where I truly place in this year," Bastion commented.

"Ah, it's an honor to duel you for me as well. I hear you're incredibly smart. I can't wait to see what deck you'll use against me," Harry replied.

"Unfortunately, you haven't given me enough information for me to calculate a method to defeat you, nor do I have much information on these... Xyz summons, but I believe you will not win easy."

"I hope that's the case. I'm looking forwards to such a challenge." Harry gave one last grin before they parted to go to their respective places. "I'll let you go first! Hit me with all you've got!" Harry looked over the cards he had drawn and nodded in determination. He didn't just have a good hand, he had a great one! Those three double summons he had in each deck were awesome.

"Gladly! I draw!" Bastion smirked at the cards in his hand and then at Harry. "I overheard some people talking about how you loved to use the fire attrbutes in your deck the most! Are you prepared to face monsters who can wash you away?"

"Is that a challenge? If so, I accept!"

_Harry!_

_What? It's all in the name of good fun, Hermione!_

_But still, it obviously means he's going to use monsters that have effects detrimental to fire attribute users. And he's probably added in a couple of cards that will kill spellcasters._

_Don't worry, Hermione. I'll handle it!_

"Very well," Bastion said before summoning a weird watery dinosaur thing. "I summon Hydrogedon (Lv4 1600/1000) in Attack position! Then I lay two cards face down and end my turn."

"My turn then, draw!" Harry grinned as he looked at the card he drew. Fate must be helping him or something because of his actions this morning. Fred, Gregory, Double Summon, Ruby Hourglass, Hogwarts and Pot of Greed. Not bad at all. "First, I activate Pot of Greed, allowing me to draw two cards," Harry announced. His face lit up when he saw the cards. Ginny and Field Barrier! "Then I activate Hogwarts' Ruby-Filled Hourglass! Everytime I summon a fire attribute Hogwarts Spellcaster, special, flip or normal summon, I get to put one House Point Counter on this card!" The hourglass appeared behind him.

"Then, I activate a monster effect from my hand! When there's a monster on my opponent's field, I can special summon Ginny, the Hogwarts Warrior (Lv3 1400/400)! She'll be in attack position." The fiery redhead appeared on the field with a smirk and gave Hary a wink. Harry grinned. "Then I summon Fred, the Hogwarts Prankster (1500/1000)! And with his effect, I get to call forth his brother, George (1500/1000 - 2000/1500) as well and give him a power boost!" Three rubies appeared in the hourglass behind Harry and the twin read heads appeared in front of Harry, resolutely not looking at him. Harry could see sweat beading on their necks and he smiled sweetly. "But I'm not stopping there, I activate Double Summon! This card allows me to normal summon again this turn. So, I'll summon Gregory, the Hogwarts Guard Dog (1900/1900)! With him, comes his best friend, Vincent (1400/1000 - 1900/1500), who also gets a power boost!"

A tremendous cheer went up as Hary paused. He looked at the audience and deduced that they were torn between watching his duel and Jaden's. He glanced to the other field and was surprised that Jaden was being overwhelmed. He was doing much better.

"Then I activate Hogwarts, School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!" Placing said card in his field spell zone, he smirked as the castle walls rose around them, Hogwarts in all its magical glory. "Next, I activate Field Barrier, which prevents the setting of a new field spell and the destruction of the current one!" A transparent dome rose around Hogwarts. Bastion frowned slightly, as if displeased and Harry grinned. "Now, it's time for battle!"

"I activate Threatening Roar, which prevents you from attacking this turn." Harry scowled at that, but then he grinned. He knew it wouldn't be an easy win.

"I end my turn."

"My turn. I draw!" Bastion smirked down at the card he drew. "I summon Oxygedon, in attack mode!" A dragon-like creature made of Oxygen appeared next to Hydrogedon. "Now, Hydrogedon, attack Fred!" The dinosaur opened its maw to release what looked like a torrent of rushing water at the read headed wizard.

"I activate Gregory's effect!" Harry interrupted. "Once per turn, I can redirect an attack to him!" Gregory jumped in front of Fred, easily holding his own against the attack.

"Spell card activate! Rush Recklessly. This gives my Hydrogedon 700 attack points (1600/1000 - 2300/1000)!" The dinosaur ceased its attack and instead rushed towards the Slytherin, tossing him in the air and destroying him. (LP - 3600/4000, Vincent: 1900/1500 - 1400/1000)

"When Hydrogedon destroys a monster, I can special summon another one from my deck," Bastion informed him. An identical creature appeared next to the first. "And it can still attack. Hydrogedon, destroy Vincent!"

This time, Harry could do nothing but watch as Vincent was destroyed. (LP - 3400/4000) Yet another Hydrogedon appeared on the field.

"Now, Hydrogedon, attack Ginny!"

Ginny was destroyed in much the same way, by a blast of what looked like muddy water. (LP - 3200/4000)

"Oxygedon, attack Fred!" Oxygedon attacked in much the same way Hydrogedon did. The attack easily blasted Fred to smithereens. (LP - 2900/4000, George: 2000/1500 - 1000/500) Harry bit his lip as he watched George visibly deflate and lose both attack and defense points.

At Bastion's questioning look, Harry clarified, "George loses an additional 500 attack and defense points when Fred is destroyed by battle."

"Well, my turn's not over yet because I play the spell card Bonding H2O! Using two of my Hydrogedons as tributes along with my Oxygedon, I can summon Water Dragon (Lv8 2800/2600)!" Bastion smiled up at his ultimate monster, a large serpent made of water. A wave of water drenched George (1000/500 - 0/500) "Unfortunately, my battle phase is already over, but Water Dragon reduces the attack of all fire types to 0. I end my turn."

"I draw!" Harry hoped to God this was a good draw, otherwise he'd be down to 100 life points this turn. "I activate Graceful Charity which allows me to draw three cards, but then discard two." He smiled down at his cards. Perfect. Sorry, Ron, Luna. He'd have to discard them, but Fate was definitely helping him. "I sacrifice George to summon Professor McGonagal, the Hogwarts Transfiguration Master (1800/2200 - 0/2200) in defense mode!" The stern professor did not look amused to have to be kneeling in defense mode when she appeared. She didn't look amused when she was drenched in water, either. Another ruby appeared in the hourglass. "I end my turn."

"Well, then, it's my turn now. I draw," Bastion glanced at his card before pointing towards Harry's professor. "Water Dragon, attack!" The blast of water destroyed Professor McGonagal, but in her place appeared a tabby cat. Another ruby fell into the hourglass.

"When Professor McGonagal is destroyed, I can special summon Minerva, the Cat Animagus (?/?)," Harry said with a grin. "And her attack and defense equal to the number of spells and traps on the field times 300 plus the number of level four or lower fire attribute Hogwarts spellcasters in the grave times 500. You do the math." Three spells on Harry's side and one face down on Bastion's.

"But that's only... 2700!" Bastion announced in confusion when Minerva bristled, her attack and defense becoming 3200.

"No, because of one of the cards I discarded with Graceful Charity. You remember Ron, right? From my entrance exams?" Harry grinned. Bastion's eyes widened.

"I switch Hydrogedon to defense mode and end my turn."

"Then it's my turn, draw!" Harry smiled at the card he drew. "I special summon Neville, the Hogwarts Defender (Lv3 500/2000 - 0/2000) from my hand in defense position. Neville can be special summoned when there is a level seven or above monster on my opponent's field. Additionally, when he is successfully summoned this way, I can add one fire attribute monster with 1500 or less attack from my deck to my hand." Neville appeared on field, crouched down, and got soked by Water Dragon. Quickly, he found Hermione and added her to his hand. "Then I summon the very monster I had just gotten. Hermione, the Hogwarts Spellmaster (1400/1500 - 0/1500)! And add a spell card to my hand with her ability." The bushy-haired witch did not look happy at the drenching she got. There was a total of seven rubies now. "I activate the effect of Hogwarts' Ruby-filled Hourglass. By tributing it, I can summon a monster from my grave with equal or less levels as the number of House Point counters on it. So, using my hourglass, I summon Professor McGonagal (1800/2200 - 0/2200) back to the field."

The hourglass cracked and then burst open, rubies falling out, to reveal Harry's professor inside. As soon as the stern witch stepped out, she was drenched by water.

"Then, I tune Hermione with Professor McGonagal," there was a collective gasp as Hermione jumped up, only to become four hoops of light and McGonagal followed, becoming six stars, "to Synchro summon Hogwarts Founder Godric Gryffindor (Godric: Lv10 3500/2900 - 0/2900, Minerva: 3400/3400)!" And from the light, the Hogwarts Founder appeared. He was a man with red curly hair and blue eyes. His body was covered in armor and expensive red robes and he had a staff in his hand.

Bastion's eyes were wide and there was a sudden silence. Even the other pairs who were dueling were watching them. Of course, it was Jaden that had to break the silence. "So that's what a Synchro summon looks like! Cool!" The naive boy exclaimed. That brought up a cheer from the crowd of both surprise and awe.

Harry grinned over at Chazz, who was looking at Godric in shock, and Jaden, who was nearly vibrating in excitement despite the fact that he was practically losing to Chazz.

"Also, because Hermione entered then grave, Minerva gains attack, though she loses some due to the hourglass not being here anymore," Harry then informed Bastion, after the crowd had somewhat calmed down. "Anyways, do you like my cards? Father loves them, though not as much as his toons."

"That is quite amazing," Bastion intoned, voice soft with awe.

"That's not it though, because I equip Godric with the Sword of Gryffindor!" Godric held up his free hand and a magnificent sword appeared in it. "The best part of it is that the Sword of Gryffindor inverts all decreases to attack. Meaning, instead of losing 3500 attack due to Water Dragon's effect, he gains 3500 attack." (0/2900 - 7000/2900)

"S-seven thousand!?" Bastion gasped. He then narrowed his eyes. "I activate Ring of Destruction and target Minerva! Ring of Destruction destroys one face up monster and inflicts damage equal to its attack to both of us."

Harry's eyes widened. Dang it, if this went off, he'd lose. But...

"Godric's effect can activate now! When I take damage due to a card effect, I can send one spell card from my deck to my grave to deal the same amount of damage to you. So, you take 6800 damage in total!" The ring on Minerva's neck exploded, destroying her, and at the same time, Godric cut through the explosion to strike Bastion. (LP - 0/0) "It's a draw!" He managed to shout after the smoke cleared.

The holograms all faded away and Bastion was still looking surprised. The audience cheered all around them and there was a huge explosion from Jaden's field. Harry caught a glimpse of a Kuriboh with dragon-shaped armor. "I did not expect that," he commented as Harry walked over. "That was a great duel though. You're very good."

"You're not too bad yourself. In fact, that was one of the most challenging duels I've had since coming here. Never expected that face down to be Ring of Destruction, since you were obviously using a different deck from the one you used at the entrance exams," Harry complimented with a smile.

"Ah, you saw that? I saw your duel as well, of course. It was very impressive. Even more so than Jaden's. I never thought I'd be able to duel you to a draw."

"Harry! That was great!" Jaden called over from his field. He had yet to finish, but it appeared that the playing field was even now. "You, too Bastion! Now, I _have_ to win!" He grinned at Chazz and drew his card. "I summon, Elemental Hero Avian (Lv3 1000/1000)! And he has just the right amount of attack points to win this for me!"

When Avian destroyed the last of Chazz's life points, the audience cheered again and Sheppard's voice rang out over the intercom, congratulating Jaden, Harry and Bastion and proclaiming Jaden a Ra Yellow. Bastion and Hary both walked over to the widely grinning Jaden.

"I guess this means you'll be in my dorm now. Congrats, and welcome to Ra Yellow, Jaden," Bastion said.

"Thanks!"

"I guess this means I get your bunk now, Jaden," was Harry's response, "Thanks!"

"Hey!"

In the end though, Jaden didn't move into Ra Yellow and Harry didn't get his bunk. Instead, Jaden stayed in Slifer, but was forced to move Harry's bed into their room since Harry had moved it out and was angry at his efforts being wasted (he actually used a simple levitation charm, but still).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Used Cards:
> 
> Ginny, the Hogwarts Warrior - Lv3, Fire, Spellcaster/Effect, 1400/400
> 
> When there's a monster on the opponent's side of the field, you can special summon this monster from your hand.
> 
> Neville, the Hogwarts Defender - Lv3, Fire, Spellcaster/Effect, 500/2000
> 
> If there is a level 7 or above monster on the opponent's field, you can special summon this card from your hand. If you successfully summon this card that way, you can add one Hogwarts monster with less than 1500 attack from your deck to your hand.
> 
> Hogwarts Founder Godric Gryffindor - Lv10, Fire, Spellcaster/Effect, 3500/2900
> 
> 1 Fire attribute Tuner + 1 Level 5 or above Hogwarts non-tuner
> 
> When the opponent activates a card effect which deals damage (to any player), you can deal the amount of damage dealt to a selected player to the controller of the card by sending one spell card from your deck to your graveyard. If this card is destroyed and sent to the graveyard, you can remove it from play to summon the synchro materials from the graveyard.
> 
> The Sword of Gryffindor - Equip Spell Card
> 
> Ignore the all reductions in attack points of the equipped monster. Instead, the equipped monster gains attack points equal to the total amount attack points that would have been deducted from the equipped monster's attack. When the equipped monster would be destroyed, destroy this card instead.
> 
> Mentioned Cards:
> 
> Luna, the Hogwarts Seer
> 
> All other cards were mentioned/used previously or actually exist.


End file.
